


Fairy Dust Glows on Butterfly Wings

by MelodicMars



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Butterflies, Fairies, Fairy AU, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Magic, mini characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2020-05-14
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:54:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24182425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelodicMars/pseuds/MelodicMars
Summary: Each year people marvel at the monarch butterflies that migrate in the fall. The only butterfly known to make a two way migration as birds do. They question how they navigate and fly such a long distance. What they don’t realize is that fairies flit within each kaleidoscope.-A group of butterflies is called a kaleidoscope
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	Fairy Dust Glows on Butterfly Wings

**Author's Note:**

> This was created for the #[atz_drawastory](https://twitter.com/shibermon/status/1237835691108847616) event created by [Ema](https://twitter.com/shiber) on Twitter, so here is my second entry!
> 
> I paired up with [Sweet Bar](https://twitter.com/sweetbar_j), check out her beautiful [art](https://twitter.com/sweetbar_j/status/1260967410628083712)!
> 
> Hope you enjoy~

Hongjoong wakes up to a shimmering light. It takes him a second to realize that it’s being caused by a large bead of water barrelling down at him. Crap. He rolls off the leaf, falling into the flower below. Unfortunately for him, the flower is damp. Sticky pollen coats him, getting everywhere and weighing down his wings. Defeated, he lies in the center of the flower. What a way to start off the morning.

Yunho peeks over the flower petals. “You okay? I heard rustling.”

“Do I look okay?”

Yunho laughs at his snark. “You’re being dramatic.”

Hongjoong sits up with a groan. “Help me up.”

“Uh, no. You’re all sticky and you’re gonna get pollen on me too,” Yunho says. Nevertheless, he offers Hongjoong a hand and hauls him up. 

They balance on the edge of the flower. Yunho draws up water and douses Hongjoong, getting rid of the pollen but also soaking him. 

Hongjoong pouts. “I was trying to avoid getting wet.”

Seonghwa flies over, laughing at Hongjoong. His hair is perfectly styled as always with small purple and blue flowers carefully weaved in, a stark contrast to the sopping mess on Hongjoong’s head.

“Stop whining, you have magic,” he says dryly. 

“You should show some respect, I’m the team leader you know.” There’s no heat behind his words. With a sigh, he waves a hand over himself. The white flowers in hair perk up again, and his hair returns to a bright red. He leaves his wings a little damp, and the water gives them an iridescent sheen.

“Alright, shows over,” he grumbles. He can’t hold the grumpy face for long, and a smile fights its way onto his face. “Okay, okay. Go wake up the others, we really do need to get going.”

Seonghwa steps off the flower gracefully, soaring over the fallen leaves and weaving through the flower stems. “Wooyoung and San are closer to me, I need to pick up some berries on the way.” 

“I’ll get Mingi and Jongho!” Yunho calls back as he takes off with alarming speed. He loops and spins away with skill that only Wooyoung ever came close to matching, blue hair disappearing in the distance.

“I supposed that leaves me with Yeosang,” Hongjoong mutters to himself. At least he’s close.

He dives straight down toward the small fern. The wind whistles past him, whipping through his hair. At the last second, he pulls up and snaps his wings out, drifting to land beside Yeosang’s sleeping form. Spotting an extra pillow, Hongjoong snickers and grabs it. He brings it down on Yeosang’s head with a thump, who startles awake with an annoyed groan. Hongjoong giggles when Yeosang fixes him with a deadpan stare.

“Be at the milkweed patch ready to leave in ten minutes!”

Hongjoong flies back to his own flower, double checking that everything is in his satchel. Clothes? Yep. Potions? Yep. Snacks? Yep. Two months wouldn’t be too long of a journey, but it would be their first full one. Taking a last look around, Hongjoong flies to the milkweed patch.

Everyone arrives looking mostly awake, all with their satchels slung over their shoulders. Hongjoong briefs them quickly.

“This isn’t going to be too different from the weeklong journeys we’ve had before. This time we’re leading three kaleidoscopes of butterflies together. Yunho, Mingi, you two are bringing up the rear. Yeosang you’re going to be in the middle point of the first two kaleidoscopes. Jongho, you’re the second midpoint. San, Wooyoung, Seonghwa, you three are going to spread yourselves along and help where needed. Another group will be following shortly after us, so we need to get going and lead well. Team ATEEZ, are you ready?”

Everyone nods. Hongjoong rises in the air, and everyone follows. They swoop across the milkweed patch sprinkling fairy dust on all the butterflies waiting there. It will offer some protection from harm, as well as signal that it is time to go. The whole patch glows for a few seconds before it fades, but a soft shimmer remains.

Hongjoong sprinkles some fairy dust over his head, marking himself out for the butterflies. He takes off high into the air and a huge wave of orange follows him. Thousands of monarch butterflies fly into the air. He sees it happen each year, and yet it still takes his breath away. They dance in a whirl of vibrant orange, creating a sea of movement. It’s easy to see how the name kaleidoscope came about. Alone, a butterfly seems fragile, delicate, like a piece of glass. When they come together, they create massive, beautiful patterns. The rays of the sun catch their wings at different angles as they move, the light reflecting in like shimmering stars.

The first swarm of butterflies ends, and Yeosang follows, the second wave following him. Hongjoong turns forward again and flies south. He steadily follows the ley lines, feeling the boost of power. The weather stays clear as they fly. Only a few fluffy white clouds occupy the sky, the rest a clear blue. The air is crisp, getting colder as they rise higher. The sun’s rays keep them warm, and a soft breeze works with them, pushing them forward.

They fly for the entire day, and make good progress. As evening falls, they settle at an already large cluster in a fir forest, meeting up with the other teams. Hongjoong swaps reports with the other leaders. No butterflies from Team ATEEZ were lost, and the other teams had a good time too. Any stragglers were picked up by the last group. Hongjoong returns to his team with relief.

“We’re doing well,” he tells them.

They cheer and pile into a group hug.

“We’re going to do just as well as the older groups,” San says with bright eyes. 

They nest in the center of the butterfly cluster, warmth radiating around them. The early night passes camly. Just past midnight, Hongjoong wakes to do a check. An owl hoots somewhere in the distance. Beside him, San and Wooyoung are tangled in a mess of limbs, San’s platinum hair barely peeking out from beneath it all. Wooyoung had forgotten to take off his headband before sleeping, and the bow sits crooked on his head. A short distance away San’s glasses are dangling from a group of fir cones. Hongjoong shakes his head at their sloppiness. He retrieves the glasses, and carefully removes Wooyoung’s headband. While putting the items in their respective satchels, Jongho stirs awake. He flits over to join Hongjoong. 

A tiny green leaf is stuck to his head, each time it seems it’s about to fall Jongho’s movement changes and it settles again. Laughter threatens to burst from Hongjoong, and he hides his smile behind his hand, trying to keep quiet. Jongho gives him a suspicious glance, tilting his head in question. The leaf slides again. Just as it reaches the edge of Jongho’s head, he straightens. Hongjoong shakes his head. He presses his lips together, desperately trying not to laugh. Jongho shrugs and flies up. Hongjoong joins him above the trees, and the two of them silently work together to replenish the protective spells for the next day's journey. 

The moon is high in the sky by the time they finish. They make a sleepy descent back to their team. Hongjoong feels the warmth wrap around him, and lets dreamland take him again.

A blast of colourful light wakes up Hongjoong and he starts to think he’s about to have a repeat of the previous morning. He realizes it’s just Mingi when two more orbs appear, bursting harmlessly against San and Wooyoung. 

“You better get up, or I’m gonna take your spot as leader,” Mingi teases. He starts on one of his made up tangents. “Once, in a past life, I was a great leader…”

Hongjoong groans. Mingi could go on for ages, getting more and more ridiculous as he goes. Already, it starts to get bizzare.

“...the wind blew down the stars, and I…”

Hongjoong conjures up his own orb, and lobs it at the diadem in Mingi’s hair. It really does make an excellent target. Mingi’s reflexes are too quick though, and he dodges out of the way. He grins at Hongjoong and continues on. 

“...a great giraffe appears…”

Hongjoong springs up and tackles Mingi. They tumble through the air, flailing their wings. Coming out of nowhere, Yeosang collides with them, and they three fall to the lower branches in a heap.

“Well, I’m up now, Mingi. I’ll have to inform you that the position of leader is still mine.” Hongjoong stands, dusting himself off with a laugh.

Yeosang snorts. “Hongjoong, I dare say you’re down much lower than you were.”

At that, all three of them burst into a fit of giggles. They dart back up the tree once they regain their breath, and prepare for another day’s flight.

For months, that’s their daily schedule. Fly all through the day, rest at night, get up to some shenanigans in between. Finally, finally! Hongjoong sees their final destination ahead. He calls back to his team in elation, the wind carrying his voice, and their answering triumphant cries are loud. They rapidly approach the clearing, a lone evergreen tree standing in the center, much taller than those of the surrounding forest. 

Hongjoong dives for the base. The wind rushes past him, roaring in his ears. He flies around the trunk of the tree, weaving upward through the branches. He throws a look over his shoulder, and it’s beautiful. Butterflies flood after him, encasing the branches in vibrant orange. The sight gives him a boost of energy, and he flies even faster, bursting through the last few layers of branches into the sky above the treetop. The butterflies flare out around him, and as each kaleidoscope rises, Ateez joins him. 

They dance across the sky in a last farewell to the butterflies. As orange disperses, Ateez flies up to sprinkle fairy dust one final time. A parting gift that would hopefully keep the butterflies safe. When the last butterfly is gone from the clearing, Hongjoong settles at the tip of the evergreen. His team joins him, and they bask in the pride of a job well done.

**Author's Note:**

> This was mostly a practice in more descriptive writing for me, thanks for reading! Any feedback is welcome :) you can find me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/MelodicMars) @MelodicMars


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